Milan bounced back from their loss to Arsenal by beating Lecce 2-0 on Sunday, as the Rossoneri opened up a four-point lead at the top of Serie A after Juventus were held to yet another draw, 0-0, by Genoa.

The Italy midfielder Antonio Nocerino put Milan ahead seven minutes in at San Siro and Zlatan Ibrahimovic doubled the lead in the 65th with his league-leading 19th goal of the season.

In Genoa, Juventus hit the woodwork three times in the second half but could not find the target and had to settle for their 14th draw of the season – the most in the league.

While they still managed to advance in the Champions League, Milan were beaten 3-0 by Arsenal on Tuesday after allowing three first-half goals. Against Lecce, who remained third from the bottom, Milan immediately took control when Nocerino took a pass from Ibrahimovic and had a shot deflected in off a defender. It was the ninth goal this season for Nocerino, whom Milan acquired from Palermo on the last day of the pre-season transfer market for the relatively low fee of €500,000 (£419,000).

In the 19th minute, Ibrahimovic just missed a delicate chip shot from a near impossible angle along the end line but the Sweden international then found the target with a powerful shot from beyond the area after taking a pass from Urby Emanuelson. Ibrahimovic was highly critical of Milan's performance against Arsenal, telling Swedish media that the manager, Massimiliano Allegri, used him out of position, but he was at the centre of all the action on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Juventus were missing their three top defenders – with Giorgio Chiellini and Andrea Barzagli injured and Leonardo Bonucci suspended – and it looked like that might cause a problem for the Turin club when Rodrigo Palacio threatened with a lob shot in the opening minute, but the Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon leaped up and swiped the ball away.

The Genoa goalkeeper Sébastien Frey was also in form and thwarted a couple of chances for Juve in the first half, but the Bianconeri had only themselves to blame for failing to score after the break, hitting the goal frame three times in the space of seven minutes.

First, Mirko Vucinic headed off the crossbar in the 53rd minute, then the Montenegro striker hit the outside of the post with another header five minutes later. On the hour mark, Simone Pepe struck the post to waste a perfect pass from the far left flank from Andrea Pirlo, who was playing his 400th match in the Italian league.

Pirlo placed the ball right at Pepe's foot with only Frey to beat but the winger's shot squarely struck the right post. Claudio Marchisio threatened again for Juve in the 69th, but Frey blocked his swerving long-range effort, and Pepe had a goal annulled for a debatable offside call in the 71st.

Genoa protested to no avail for a penalty in added time when Pirlo appeared to trip Marco Rossi inside the area. Juventus remain the only undefeated club in the league, but have more draws (14) than wins (13).

In the evening matches nine-man Lazio were beaten 3-1 at home by Bologna and Udinese fell 1-0 at Novara, who were playing their first match with Attilio Tesser back as manager.

In Rome Lazio were hoping to build momentum off their derby win last weekend. Bologna rested their captain Marco Di Vaio but still took control when Daniele Portanova scored following a corner in the 11th minutes.

Alessandro Diamanti then made it 2-0 for Bologna in the 28th by scoring into an unguarded net following a failed clearance from the goalkeeper Federico Marchetti. The Lazio midfielder Francelino Matuzalem was sent off for putting his hand in Diamanti's face in the 42nd minute but the Bologna midfielder Matteo Rubin scored an own-goal in the 55th to let Lazio temporarily back in the match.

Lazio were reduced to nine men when Alvaro González was sent off in the 58th minute for a last-man foul on Bologna's dangerous Uruguayan striker, Gastón Ramírez. Two minutes later the Slovenian midfielder Rene Krhin restored Bologna's two-goal lead from a rebound after a free-kick.

In Novara the hosts' Brazilian forward Jeda scored with a header following a corner in the 16th minute. Udinese's Brazilian defender, Danilo, had a goal disallowed for a questionable offside call in the 70th.

In the other matches on Sunday Atalanta drew 1-1 with Parma, Catania beat Fiorentina 1-0 and Cesena lost 2-0 at home to Siena.

Cagliari fired their coach, Davide Ballardini, and rehired Massimo Ficcadenti on Sunday, marking the 15th coaching change in the league this season and the third switch for the Sardinian club, who lie in 16th place. The Cagliari president, Massimo Cellino, fired Roberto Donadoni in August and replaced him with Ficcadenti before the season began. Ballardini then replaced Ficcadenti in November but Ficcadenti was still under contract and will manage the club again in the final 11 matches of the campaign.